


Holocalls and Other Things

by Rosalee_TAL



Category: Star Wars Legends: The Old Republic
Genre: Angst, F/F, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-31
Updated: 2016-08-09
Packaged: 2018-07-28 12:35:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,347
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7640368
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rosalee_TAL/pseuds/Rosalee_TAL
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A few weeks after the defeat of Revan on Yavin IV, it is business as usual for the Empire, and for the Wrath. Putting duty before all else soon becomes decidedly more difficult however.</p><p>Sequel to 'Delicate Entanglements'.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chances

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a shorter one, providing a bit of scene-setting.

It had been almost three weeks since the tenuously allied Imperial and Republic forces had defeated Revan on Yavin IV. The respective armies and their commanders had since returned to business as usual, or rather what amounted to ‘usual’ - with the former Sith Emperor at large, _somewhere_ in the galaxy. The vast majority of resources were devoted to discovering his location and his plans, whatever they might be. Tension was high.

The Fury and its crew were of course among those most active. Mission after mission kept them continuously occupied - currently, they were docked at the Belsavis orbital station.

Valanthra was standing at the ship’s large holoterminal, concluding a discussion on a promising potential new lead with Darth Marr.

“See that it is done, Wrath” he intoned.

“Of course, Marr. As it always will be.” Valanthra inclined her head politely, then immediately terminated the call to go and brief the crew.

“My Lord Wrath” said Quinn as he saw her approach, “We have received a list of the updated private holo-frequencies for Empire figures of high seniority. You are of course included on it. I have transferred it onto your new personal datapad for your information and perusal.”

He handed it to her.

“Thank you Quinn, I will look at it later.”

“Oh, you’ll want to ‘ _peruse_ ’ it right away, my Lord,” mocked Vette.

Quinn scowled at the brash Twilek, turned smartly on his heel and headed for the flight deck.

Vette turned to Valanthra. “In all seriousness, you should. Look at it now, I mean. You won’t regret it!”

Vette winked at her, and sauntered off down the corridor. Valanthra raised an eyebrow after her Twilek companion.

She scanned the medium-sized – _and unalphabetised, presumably much to Quinn’s horror_ \- list of names on the datapad, all the way down to its conclusion.

The name at the bottom.

_Minister Beniko._

Valanthra glanced up, looking at nothing in particular. She had almost managed to put _those feelings_ to the back of her mind, but here they were now - punching her in the stomach with all the weight of a charging rancor. After a few seconds, she returned her steely blue gaze to the datapad.

Yes, it was definitely still there. But really, why _wouldn’t_ it be on such a list?

She allowed herself a smile at Vette’s continued skill at ‘situational intervention’.

To hell with it. She would try tomorrow.


	2. Breathe

“Could we call upon the impeccable skills of Black Ops do you think?” asked Valanthra, as she and Pierce went through the Fury’s airlock, following their brief collection mission on Belsavis. “Captain Lorant and the others?”

Pierce grinned. “If they know it’s you asking, m’lord, they’ll do it.”

“Good” she responded. “The soldiers who took the Bastion should not be kept idle for long. I would welcome your and their help with this, Lieutenant.”

“They will agree to reform for this for sure. Their current commanding officer is a good man. A touch stubborn, but a good man nevertheless.”

Valanthra raised an eyebrow and smirked. “As stubborn as General Griest? That would be something.”

Pierce briefly frowned and then almost immediately grinned. “Fortunately not, m’lord – I’m not certain that would be possible.”

“Indeed.”

They walked into the Fury’s main corridors.

“Do what you have to do Lieutenant. Let me know right away if my input is needed” instructed Valanthra, as she turned to meet the approaching Captain Quinn.

Pierce nodded. “Thank you m’lord, I will.” He headed for the equipment room.

Quinn reached her and offered up a datapad. “My lord – the reports as you requested” he said, inclining his head.

“Thank you Quinn. Please ready us for departure – Darth Marr will not take kindly to waiting, and it is a long journey back to Imperial space.”

“Yes my lord, I have the co-ordinates ready. I will set a course as soon as we have been given clearance.”

“Excellent.” She took a breath. “And I have an important call to make once we have launched. Please see that I am not disturbed.”

“Of course, my lord” he replied, and immediately made for the flight deck.

Valanthra marched through to her personal quarters and shut the door, pulling off her gloves and throwing them on her desk. She looked over at her personal holo-terminal in the corner – smaller than the main terminal in the communications hub of the ship of course, but far larger than her handheld holo-communicator. Perfect for calls like the one she was about to make. Part of her questioned whether she should really do this, whether this was a wise course of action given their agreement that duty to the Empire needed to come first in times such as these – and _anyway_ , would the call even be answered?

_Breathe._

Valanthra sat down in the chair and closed her eyes for a few brief seconds, then reopened them and keyed in the frequency from the list Quinn had provided her with.

After what seemed like an eternity, the terminal beeped to indicate the call had been accepted.

_____________________________________________________

Early evening, and Lana sat in her reasonably spacious office in her Dromund Kaas apartment, mulling over what seemed like a mountain of reports. It had been mere weeks since Darth Marr had appointed her as the head of the newly reformed Sith Intelligence, and there was so much to do. She had never wished for a position of power, but, here she was – focused on her devotion to the Empire above all else, as always.

_Above everything._

The sound of her holo-terminal chiming to indicate an incoming call made her frown in mild confusion.

Who on earth was this? She was not expecting any communications this evening, and few had access to her private frequency, only those on……… _those on the approved list_. She swallowed.

_Could it be…?_

Her protocol droid ambled over and examined the terminal, then turned to her.

“The frequency is that of the Lord Wrath, Master. Shall I accept the call for you?” he inquired.

Lana hesitated for a moment. “No, thank you, I will take it myself. Leave me please.”

The droid did as instructed, and left the room, closing the door behind him.

Lana walked over to the terminal and pushed the accept button. The image flickered into life.

It _was_ her.

“My lord Wrath, this is……..unexpected” she managed.

“Lana” returned Valanthra, “I received the updated frequencies a couple of days ago from Captain Quinn, and thought I would see how you were.”

 _Lana_. The way her name rolled off the warrior’s tongue stirred memories and feelings she had endeavoured to put aside. She felt the familiar heat in her chest burn anew. _Not now_.

“I am well, considering how much work there is to do” she said as evenly as she could. “And you, my Lord – I heard Belsavis went well?”

Valanthra nodded. “It did. Darth Marr will be pleased, at least. He wishes the artifacts delivered to him personally. He has been demanding……but good to work with.”

“I was surprised when he offered me this position” Lana replied. “It was offered in such a manner that strongly suggested refusal was not an option. He is the figurehead the Empire deserves, and needs, under the present conditions.” she conceded.

“Indeed” agreed Valanthra. “What happened on Yavin has demonstrated to us in the strongest possible terms that the Emperor no longer has the best interests of the Empire at heart. And you were the best choice for the job, by the way. Crossed paths with Agent Shan yet at all?”

Lana shook her head. “No – well, not directly. I can’t hinder or endanger him too much though. Jakarro would never forgive me should he hear about it, especially after what happened on Rishi.”

Valanthra chuckled. “You made the right decision on that, Lana. If it wasn’t for you we never would have uncovered what we did.”

“Thank you, my Lord.”

“Anyway,” added the warrior, “If Jakarro did turn up, I’d be more worried about listening to that droid drone on and on.”

Lana smiled. “Yes, C2-D4 really did have a way with words, didn’t he?”

They both laughed.

An awkward silence stretched between them.

Lana allowed herself to reach out, only needing to lightly brush against Valanthra’s mind to immediately sense the raw _need_ emanating from the warrior, comingled with uncertainty, and…….something else. Frustration? Disappointment? She suddenly became aware of the Dromund Kaas rain lashing hard against her apartment windows, punctuated by cracks of thunder.

Valanthra spoke first. “Lana, I…………I mi---“

“No” interrupted Lana, “Don’t say it. Don’t make this any harder than it already is.”

“But I……”

“No.” Lana cut across the warrior again. “We both have a responsibility to the Empire – responsibilities I—we—cannot do justice to if we do not focus on them. You know this. I know this.”

 _But it still aches_.

Valanthra looked away for a few seconds then looked back. “I know” she said simply, with no small degree of resignation.

Lana took a deep breath. “In……..in fact it might be best if we do not speak again for a while, unless there is mission critical business to discuss” she said, almost immediately regretting the statement for how it made the warrior’s mind slump. _And her own_.

“Lana, please d----“

“I have to go now. May the force ever serve you, my lord.” Lana terminated the call, walked over to her desk and sat back down, aiming to return to her pile of reports, but it was no use – her mind could not refocus on the task at hand no matter how much she tried.

_I shouldn’t have done that. I was too abrupt. But it’s for the best – she knows that too._

Lana retired to bed early, resolving to get her roiling emotions under control. She would have to, there was too much at stake. She was a Lord of the Sith, and this was childish. She had been making significant progress on this front of late though she reassured herself, managing to suppress _certain feelings_ – for the most part.

_Really? Why have you dreamt about her every night, then?_


	3. Better

“Aww come on, that’s not fair, not again!”

“Now now Vette,” chided Pierce. “You should know better by now than to think you can beat me at this!”

“Darn it, I used to be sooooo good at Sabacc” lamented Vette, huffing back in her seat.

“Until you took me on, that is…..” Pierce grinned at her, then looked over at Valanthra, who was sitting nearby browsing a datapad she had been handed by Captain Quinn.

“What about you, m’lord – care to try your luck?” he inquired.

Vette sat up rapidly. “Oh stars no, don’t ask _her_. She’ll use some of her Sithy magic to……befuddle us!”

“Vette, I’m hurt” retorted Valanthra, smiling. “Do you think so little of my integrity?”

“Hey, you know you’re my favourite Sith in all the galaxy, but my wounded pride can’t take anymore!” Vette threw her arm against her forehead and fell dramatically back in her seat.

Valanthra and Lt. Pierce laughed.

The sound of an incoming holocall cut through their merriment. Valanthra looked to the door. “Captain Quinn, would you mind?” she said, seeing him pass by.

“My Lord, that isn’t the ship’s main holoterminal. I believe it is your own private one” he replied.

Valanthra stood up. “In that case, I’ll answer it myself. It will probably be Darth Marr, his patience wears thin no doubt. I will return shortly.”

She marched quickly to her private quarters and closed the door, then walked over to the holoterminal and pressed the button to accept the call.

“What can I do for you, Darth Ma---“ she began, before stopping short as she looked up and realised that the figure materialising before her was not, in fact, the prominent Dark Council member. Unless he had shrunk in stature and become a blonde female Sith Lord.

“I’m sorry, my Lord – were you waiting for another call? I can leave and try again another time, if that’s more convenient?” offered Lana apologetically.

“No, Lana, I…….no it’s fine, please stay” Valanthra managed, unable to hide her surprise. “Did you……did you wish to discuss a particular mission you need my assistance with?”

Lana paused. “No, I………I wanted to…….apologise. For our last conversation. Well, my manner specifically.”

“Oh, forgive me” said Valanthra, slightly bemused. “I assumed after what you said last time that there was a very limited set of circumstances in which it would be appropriate for us to get in touch.”

“I remember” she admitted. “I was very harsh. I………did not relish talking to you like that.”

“It’s fine, Lana. I understood.”

“No, it’s not. I owe you more than that.” Lana paused. “You, who has been—is—closer to me than any other.”

Valanthra took a deep breath. “Lana you know how I feel about you. But you were right – there is much at stake at present.”

“If circumstances were different, maybe.” said Lana, smiling ruefully. “But for now there is too much else to keep our attention.”

“Indeed” replied Valanthra. “Duty to the Empire comes first.” Then after a moment, she added “Doesn’t mean we have to like it though.”

“No.” Lana paused. “I must admit, I…….find myself thinking of you often, and wishing for your counsel. There has been a lot to deal with since our former Emperor disappeared – I am managing of course, but there are times when a friendly face would be welcome.”

Valanthra smiled widely. “The feeling is mutual, trust me. And you are more than capable of dealing with anything they throw at you. You know I am here anytime you require that friendly face.”

Lana smiled back. “I know. Thank you, my Lord.”

After a brief silence, she spoke again. “Have you returned to Imperial space yet?”

“Almost” responded Valanthra. “Darth Marr will have his artifacts imminently. Then I am sure he will find me something else to do.”

Lana smiled again. “I am to go to Ziost in the next couple of days, with a small task force. There have been some reports of…..strange occurrences in New Adasta. The Republic have been sniffing around too.”

“Strange occurrences? Republic involvement? Sounds interesting, if a little nebulous.” Her voice took on a more worried tone. “Be careful, Lana.”

“Oh I’m sure it will be dealt with reasonably easily. But thank you for your concern – it’s…...touching.”

They fell into silence again, neither of them wanting to end the call.

“Well I guess I had better not keep you any longer” said Lana eventually. “And I have a few preparations to make myself.”

“Goodbye, Lana. I’m sure we will speak again soon?”

Lana smiled. “I’m sure.” A pause. “Be well, Vala” she added softly.

This particular break in formality had been done so infrequently since they had first met – but now the way Lana used her first name made Valanthra’s pulse start to quicken, the sound taking her right back to _that_ evening on Yavin some weeks prior.

“You too, Lana." she replied. _You too_.

The call terminated with a flicker and a click.

Valanthra opened the door of her private quarters and made to return to the others, but then suddenly decided that she would quite like to sit down for a moment. She back tracked and sat down on the chair by her desk.

It was then that Vette passed by the open room, briefly glimpsing the scene within and immediately reversing and standing in the doorway.

“I…….take it that it wasn’t the illustrious and eternally spooky Darth Marr on the holo after all?” she inquired. “He isn’t usually that chatty, right?”

“You’ve guessed correctly” said Valanthra. “No, actually it was…………Lana.”

“Oh reeeealllly?” Vette grinned. “And how did the conversation go this time? Better?”

Valanthra nodded, as she rose up out of the chair.

“Better.”


	4. Help

Valanthra strolled through the Fury’s corridors, on her way through to the communications room. They had only just returned to Imperial space, and she was looking forward to finally completing the task that had kept them busy for the last few weeks. She made her way past the holo-terminal, but was abruptly stirred out of her reverie when it suddenly lit up and beeped loudly to indicate an incoming priority transmission. The sound attracted the rest of the crew, who appeared beside the warrior in no short order.

Vette spoke first. “Who’s this now?” she asked, as she hovered over the button to accept the call.

“Darth Marr perhaps?” queried Jaesa, her fine features collected together in puzzlement.

“Vette - how about you put whoever it is through, and then we will no doubt discover what the caller requires” replied Quinn with a straight face. “After all, that _is_ how this works.”

Vette pulled a face and stuck out her tongue at the Captain. Pierce stifled a laugh and winked at the Twilek, who winked back at him and pushed the button.

The image of Lana Beniko materialised on the holo.

She was standing with her back to them, clearly giving some unfortunate team member something of a dressing down. “No, I don’t care. Revoke their access. All of them! _Now_!”

Valanthra raised an eyebrow then frowned in confusion. “Lana, what’s going on? Where are you? Who are you talking to?”

“Lord Wrath, it’s time. You must confront him” she replied as she spun round to face the warrior.

“Lana, take a breath and explain what on earth is happening.”

“Our former Emperor, Vitiate, he’s—“ she whirled around to an unseen individual again, pointing her finger at them in fury.

“I don’t _care_ what they tell you, assume they’re lying and deal with them accordingly!”

Lana turned back to Valanthra, the stress of the situation radiating from her mind to the warrior’s, loud and clear. _It really isn’t good_ , she communicated, before speaking aloud again.

“He’s here – Vitiate’s presence, here on Ziost. He’s taking over this outpost, mind-controlling soldiers and Sith alike, using them to murder anyone he can, to fuel his power I think. The Republic have a sizable presence here too – and they aren’t faring any better than us. We need help.”

“Hold them off – and don’t worry, I’m on my way.”

“Good” breathed Lana, holding Valanthra’s worried gaze for a moment, then adding a relieved “Thank you, my Lord.”

“I’m sending co-ordinates.” She pulled out a datapad and started tapping furiously on it. “We’ll hold this bunker for as long as we can with what we have, but you must hurry or—“

The holographic image of Lana flickered as she suddenly stumbled, struggling to maintain her balance as an apparent explosion rocked the bunker. The transmission immediately went dead, leaving nothing but static punctuating the stunned silence of the Fury’s crew.

“Lana, can you read me? Lana…?” called Valanthra, unable—and unwilling—to hide the concern in her voice. “Dammit, Lana, come in!”

“The line is dead, my Lord” said Captain Quinn, telling her what she already knew. “I can’t get Minister Beniko back at all. I have the co-ordinates she managed to send through at the last minute, however.”

Valanthra paused for the briefest of moments, leaning on the edge of the holo-terminal, drawing on the Force for strength and composure, before finally addressing the crew.

“Everyone – as you just saw, we are needed.” She stood up straight. “Let us go and confront our absentee Emperor for once and for all. You all know what to do. The longer we delay, the more our allies are at risk. Let us finish this.”

Lt. Pierce, Jaesa and Broonmark immediately marched off in different directions to carry out their own individual preparations. Vette dashed through to the flight deck and took up her position in the pilot’s chair. Valanthra followed her at a swift pace, with Captain Quinn in tow shortly behind them.

“Set a course for Ziost” she commanded, pacing up and down with her arms folded. “Let’s see how fast we can get there.”

_Lana. You had better be safe when I arrive._


End file.
